Something's Amiss
by NineCentsChange
Summary: Prequel to "The Greatest Surprise." Willow suspects that she may be expecting, and needs to work up the courage to tell Wilson.


At first, Willow just thought she had the flu. She didn't feel too feverish, but it would've explained the nausea she felt in the mornings. On top of that, she'd occasionally feel extremely tired during the day, and more than once Wilson would come home to find her passed out on the couch, with Chester curled up by her side. However, the biggest indication that something was amiss was when she realized that her monthly cycle hadn't come on time. She'd checked her calendar, marking the day when it would have normally come, and then checked the current date, almost two weeks later.

She sat on the couch, one hand resting on top of Chester who was cuddled up close to her, and the other half-consciously flicking her lighter on and off as she mulled over the various symptoms she was experiencing for what felt like the umpteenth time. _C'mon Willow, think,_ she coached herself and closed her eyes, trying to recall the dreaded high school health course that she and everyone else had to suffer through. What was having a late period a symptom of? She thought hard and listed off everything she could remember. High levels of stress have been known to delay a period, along with taking birth control pills, menopause— Willow scoffed to herself, it certainly wasn't that— increased amounts of exercise, pregnancy, eating disorders…

_Wait_. Willow opened her eyes, staring straight ahead. _Pregnancy?_ The idea hit her like a bucket of ice water. She stopped flicking her lighter and thought harder. A missed period _was _a telltale sign, and she and Wilson certainly had their moments of intimacy, including one that wasn't too long ago. She blushed slightly at remembering that day, but quickly refocused on the situation at hand. If there was the chance that she and Wilson might be expecting, she'd better try and get it confirmed. She jumped off the couch and quickly walked towards the front door, checking the clock as she went. It was still five hours until Wilson usually came home, and if the walk-in clinic on the edge of town wasn't too busy, she should be able to get there and back with time to spare. She grabbed her coat and was about to open the door when she heard a whimper behind her. She turned to see Chester sitting in the hallway, clearly concerned by his mistress's sudden departure. Willow smiled at the chest-monster and crouched down to pet him on the head. "Don't worry boy," she told him, "I'm just headed into town for a bit, okay? I'll be back soon, I promise." Chester then resumed his usually happy panting and licked her hand. Willow gave him one more smile as she opened the door and exited the household.

It was a few hours later when Willow returned. She opened the front door and silently walked over to the couch, a packet of paper clutched in her hand, hardly noticing Chester's excitement for seeing her again. She flopped on the couch and tilted her head back for a moment, sighing, then glanced through the papers one more time. The test she'd taken at the doctor was designed to detect pregnancy with almost perfect accuracy. Most of it consisted of docterly mumbo-jumbo she couldn't decipher, though the general point of it was made very clear. At the bottom of the results section, in bright red letters, read the word: _POSITIVE_. She set the papers down next to her and ran her hand through her bangs, still in a state of shock. Now it was official. She was definitely expecting, her and Wilson were going to be parents. Parents! The very concept of the idea made her head spin. Willow got up from the couch, in search of their cache of firewood. She needed to clear her mind, and she knew just what to do.

Soon, a nice fire was crackling in the fireplace. Willow had wrapped herself in a blanket and sat down as close as she could to the flames without risk of the blanket getting set ablaze. She watched the beautiful flames dance about the charred wood, taking in the earthy, lovely smell. She'd only been watching it for a little bit, and already she felt calmer and more focused. She sighed again, she had started to enjoy the idea of being a mother. It was like having a small version of her or Wilson, someone they would care for and teach them everything they knew.

Then, Willow got a pit in her stomach. Wilson. She'd almost forgot. How was he going to react to the news? They'd spoken together a bit about the idea of having children, but never really decided to actively try for them. Wilson had grown up as an only child from a wealthy family, but his parents never approved of his eccentricity and "useless experiments", as they called them. He left home at the age of eighteen, and his parents consequently cut him off from any inheritance he was expected to get. Willow, on the other hand, had grown up in an orphanage and therefore never knew her biological parents. She'd cared for and made friends with many of the young children while she was there, though, so that likely gave her more experience than Wilson.

Wilson. Right. Back to the situation at hand. How was she going to tell him? Willow thought hard about it. She figured it'd be best to take the direct approach and just tell him as soon as he got home. But what if he wasn't happy about it? Hundreds of scenarios manifested in her head. Sure, he'd never said he was against having kids, but… what if he changed his mind? Fear started to creep into Willow's mind, but the crackling of the fire soon brought her back to reality. She realized that she'd placed one of her hands on her midsection underneath the blanket. She laughed to herself. Only a few weeks since being conceived, and she was already becoming protective of the tiny life that resided within her. She took a deep breath. No matter what happened, she still needed to tell him. _You can do this,_ she told herself, _just go for it. As soon as he walks through that door, just walk right up to him and say—_

"Willow? I'm home!"

Willow snapped out of her thoughts, eyes wide. She turned around on the floor and called back to Wilson. "Hey! I'm right down here by the fireplace." She took a few more silent breaths, desperately trying to hide the fact that her heart was racing.

The sound of footsteps echoed through the house as he walked over to her. Chester, who was resting by the fireplace, leapt up and gleefully scampered over to Wilson as he came around to the front of the sofa. Wilson knelt down to scratch the monster's head as it bombarded him with licks on his face. "Hey, boy," he laughed, "good to see you too!" He picked up Chester and sat down next to Willow.

Willow smiled at him. "Hey, how was work?"

Wilson shrugged as he continued to pet Chester. "Eh, same old, same old if you ask me." He scooted closer to Willow. "But more importantly, how have you been doing? Been feeling any better?"

"Oh," she began, unsure of where to start, "yeah, I've been a bit better today. I was just feeling a bit cold, so I'd thought I'd start a fire." She looked back towards the flames, she needed to tell him now. "So, um…" she began, but her voice began to falter and trail off again.

"Willow?"

"Hm?"

"Did you… go to the doctor?"

Willow's felt her stomach drop. Oh God, he noticed the papers. She turned to see Wilson leaning over her shoulder, trying to get a better look at the papers she'd left on the couch. She quickly turned and snatched the papers off the couch and held them close to her chest. "Oh! Uh, yeah, I-I did." She laughed nervously, crinkling the papers in her hands. "F-Funny you should ask that…"

Now very concerned, Wilson moved closer to her and put his hand on her arm. "Willow? Are you sure you're feeling alright? Tell me everything that happened, please." He paused, growing increasingly worried. "Is it…serious?"

Willow looked at him, and released a hand from the papers to put it on his arm. "No, it isn't." She continued once she felt Wilson starting to relax a bit. "In fact, you might even consider it to be good news."

"Good news? How so?"

"Well... Remember that night a few weeks ago? You know, when you and I…" She trailed off, hoping he'd catch on.

"Which night…?" Wilson thought for a moment, then understood. "Oh, _that _night, right?"

Willow nodded. "Well, I went to the doctor because I hadn't been feeling well since then. That and I had a hunch about something. A theory, if you will." She paused again, it was now or never. "And by the time I got out of there, they had confirmed it."

Wilson nodded, understanding so far, but unsure of where this story was headed. And your theory was…?"

"That the possible result of our night together had come to pass." She handed the papers to him. "Here, read this."

Wilson did as he was told. When he reached the bottom of the page, he put the papers down and looked at Willow, eyes wide. "So you're…We're…"

Willow nodded, tears starting to form in her eyes. "Mm-hm. You and me, we're gonna be parents…" Willow looked back down at the blanket. "I'm so sorry I didn't tell you sooner. I just didn't know where to begin, and I didn't know what you were going to think…"

"What I think?" Wilson broke out into an ecstatic grin. "I think this is wonderful!" He set the papers down and practically tackled Willow in a big hug, much to her surprise.

"You're- you're not upset?"

"Upset? Of course not!" He held her closer. "If anything, _I_ should apologize for being so slow on the uptake." He finally loosened his grip on her, and leaned back on the sofa. "So, a baby huh?"

Willow nodded again, "Yep." She picked up the papers once more. "It's all right here. Black and white, clear as crystal."

He smiled at her, then looked off into the distance, as he did whenever he was thinking hard about something. "Boy, there's gonna be so much to do." He listed things off on his fingers as he went. "We'll have to get a nursery ready, go shopping for clothes, decide who we want to tell…"

Willow put her hand on his shoulder. "Okay there, mister, I know you're excited, but let's not get too carried away too early. We do have nine months to prepare after all."

Wilson looked back at her, then smiled and put his hand on where her stomach was under the blankets. "Maybe, but nine months can go by much faster than you think."

Willow smiled, "I've only known that I'm pregnant for a few hours. Let's give it just a little more time to take it all in."

Wilson sighed exaggeratedly. "Alright." Then he smiled. "Tomorrow, then?"

She nuzzled him affectionately. "Tomorrow."

"Excellent!" He set Chester down, and started to get up from the floor. "Now, I don't know about you, but I think a celebratory dinner is in order." He reached his hand out to her. "Care to join me?"

She took his hand, and he helped her up. "Why certainly. Got anything in mind?"

"I was thinking anything you'd feel like having. How about you?"

"I'm good with anything we got in the kitchen. C'mon let's go see."

Wilson took her arm as they walked together. "Well that was surprisingly easy."

She laughed. "Well enjoy it while you can. It's only a matter of time before the cravings start kicking in."

It was now his turn to laugh. "I'll be ready. Don't you worry." He held her closer as the two of them made their way into the kitchen, Chester bouncing happily behind them.


End file.
